DISCLAIMER: Not a diary post. Entirely opinion-driven content which some call political but I refer to as WTF is going on? My questions are genuine and knowing the answers would go a long way toward reconciling the collective transmogrification of this era. It’s therapeutic simply to ask.
- Which character traits found in Donald J. Trump are the ones that inspire trust, confidence, and loyalty in his followers? What do they hear when he speaks, what do they see as he moves through his world?
- Why did safety precautions during a worldwide pandemic become politicized? Why this battle over that situation? Does somebody stand to benefit if more Americans die? Is that why the mounting death toll – now more than the sum of five U.S. wars – is refuted and ignored?
- We see fascism encroaching on our now-creaky system of democracy… we’ve been watching its advance for the past four years, and far longer underground. Why are Americans who are anti-fascist, as our parents were, now the enemy? And why is that way of life what Donald Trump’s voters want for America?
- Will people really buy into four more years of daily chaos because they care about only one issue? How fairly will fetuses-saved balance viable-lives-lost when the counting’s done? And one last time, why are the unborn the only Americans who qualify for the unassailed right to live?
- His rallies never took a break until stopped by the virus. Endless political rallies held by the incumbent, who does that and why?
- The rallies consistently attract people who seem primed for confrontation, avid for it. Is the primal desire to inflict damage on liberals a general thing in the GOP now? Is that the emotion that drives the narrative?
- Why has the angry, armed white man become an icon in this era? What’s the appeal? Is the typical Trump voter really that base?
- What are the tenets and characteristics of today’s GOP that motivate an average citizen to align with it? What is it about the interface, the interaction with the public, the perceptions attached, and their code of ethics that causes people to identify?
- A homogenous society, pretty same-same, nobody weird, nobody marching to their own drummer, all pigment and cultural backgrounds tame and non-threatening… that feels like the kind of world conservatives want. Will there ever be real communication on all that and more?
- Are Trump’s followers good with a country where everyone except white Republican males is a second-class citizen? Where Black citizens live life from cradle to grave dreading THE MOMENT? Where LGBTQ citizens are gradually, or quickly, re-stripped of the equal rights and protections they’ve won, older people are entirely expendable, and truth is something our grandparents valued?
- After standing against Russia’s brand of ethics for generations, why does Trump’s base now want to BE Russia? What changed?
- For the evangelical world, which helped put him where he is, are there no lines anymore, no principles that matter beyond their agenda? And does the end ever really justify the means?
- What about Donald John Trump says “Jesus the Savior” to evangelicals and others? What are the similarities, the places where their reputed characters align?
- How do loyal Trump voters see the world in the next four years? Serene, the opposition vanquished at last, society remade into the conservative mold? No visible differentiations, nothing that marks us as a diverse, free, happy, inventive, creative society with the maturity to give and take? Will every aberrant blip, especially in cities now designated Anarchy Jurisdictions, be dealt with swiftly and forcefully before somebody can incite a neighbor? Is our right of redress against what was representative government already dead?
- Will Trump’s people and Republicans in general be happy with the spoils if he wins? Satisfied? In a mood to play nice? Or is this forever now? That’s the answer I want most.
Playing for Time 
Sep 24, 2020 @ 16:57:46
Great questions with complicated answers. I think the GOP has been exploiting the needs and desires of evangelical and conservative Christians for a long time now. As we know from our experiences and interactions in church, there was always the need to see the enemy among us and fight it tooth and nail. A spiritual enemy, yes, but also manifested physically in the form of what was considered ungodly behavior. And of course, that was tied to liberalism and non-Christians (while turning a blind eye to the ungodly within, forgiving it in our own faith communities). Because the faith is rooted in Jewish texts and history, I think we absorbed a mindset we non-Jewish folks didn’t need to. In fact, THEY were the enemy at times.
Our divisions are often most visible during periods of great stress. FDR had quite a time of it during WWII in his efforts to keep the country going during crises (thank you, Eleanor). And nothing’s been the same since. Conflicts, wars nonstop. Now we’re in a different kind of war with Trump at the helm, a man of such narcissism that he can’t tolerate things not looking good…especially himself. His entire life has been about image and creating images. So it’s no wonder the deep thinkers are being pushed aside in favor of shiny things like flags, songs, rallies and patriotic shows. Americans are afraid of becoming unexceptional, of losing our exalted place in the world. And someone has to be blamed for it.
There are those of us that want to return to and improve that stature, not for selfish reasons but because we know how important it is to other democracies and others that aspire to be. Then there are those of who want the status quo, not betterment or progress. It’s more comfortable than thinking about how to build a more perfect Union. Who ever thought that in 2020 anyone would still be litigating the Civil War?
In any case, Trump’s cult doesn’t want a perfect leader. They know he’s not by any stretch. He’s their King Cyrus, creating good (their version of it) even though the person isn’t so great. They believe in the skills he’s convinced them he has. Their religious leaders keep them rallied around a small set of goals, mainly the abortion issue. But now the world knows that it’s a sham because of how many in the GOP have responded to a worldwide pandemic. Their hypocrisies about life are on full view and I do believe people, even conservatives, have taken notice. Because as it turns out, it was never about life at all. It’s about power and money, and the Pharisees have been exposed. And we know that these people are willing to absorb or deny every lie Trump and his enablers tell to worship that golden calf. And we know how that story turned out. As with Covid19 and other dreadful things, humans usually learn best when it hurts them directly. And I guess that’s what may need to happen. It’s not fair to those of us preaching the warnings of course. But hopefully the effort is worth it.
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Sep 25, 2020 @ 06:41:25
Hopefully, yes. We’re singularly helpless against the onslaught bearing down on us, but the truth is like armor and it’s empowering to keep speaking it. Wish we could spend a few hours talking together over drinks of your choice.
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Sep 23, 2020 @ 15:45:09
I’d like to see some answers to these questions, too. I’m not holding my breath though. I want our country back.
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